Centrifugal fan housing

ABSTRACT

The centrifugal fan housing consists of not more than five parts, two of which are duplicate parts, which may be assembled with the inlet bell at either end of the housing and with the scroll located to provide for clockwise rotation or counterclockwise rotation of the fan. This arrangement provides a universal fan housing which is assembled from identical parts to suit any installation.

United States Patent Inventor Charles E. Bullock North Syracuse, NY.

App] No, 4,652

Filed Jan. 21, 1970 Patented Nov. 9, 1971 Assignee Carrier CorporationSyracuse, N.Y.

CENTRIFUGAL FAN HOUSING 5 Claims, 10 Drawing Figs.

U.S.Cl 415/219 Int. Cl ..F04d 29/40, F04d 29/00 Field of Search 4 15/204, 206, 2 19 Rclerences Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Earhart HanfHcgan Schwurz Austin Primary Examiner-Henry F Raduazo Alwrneys- Harry G.Martin. Jr, and J. Raymond Curtin ABSTRACT: The centrifugal fan housingconsists of not more than five parts, two of which are duplicate parts,which may be assembled with the inlet bell at either end of the housingand with the scroll located to provide for clockwise rotation orcounterclockwise rotation of the fan. This arrangement provides auniversal fan housing which is assembled from identical parts to suitany installation.

PATENTEU 9 SHEET 1 BF 3 FIG. 4

FIG. 5

FIG.

INVENTOR.

CHARLES E. BULLOCK ATTORNEY PATENTEDN 9 I971 SHEET 2 BF 3 INVENTOR.

CHARLES E. BULLOCK ATTORNEY PATENTEDNUV 91911 SHEET 3 [IF 3 FIG. 9

INVENTOR.

CHARLES E. BULLOCK ATTORNEY CENTRIFUGAL FAN HOUSING BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION Conventionally, centrifugal fan housings embody a fixed designand structure whereby the fan must be oriented in a particular mannerwhen it is installed for use; and the fan must be rotated in either aclockwise or a counterclockwise direction according to the design andstructure embodied in the fan housing. This necessitates the manufactureand stocking of a large number of different parts in order that a fan ofa certain capacity and arrangement is available for a particularinstallation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention has as an object a centrifugalfan housing consisting only of duplicate end members formed withopeningsand two closures, one of which is formed with an inlet bell, and theother with a small opening to receive the motor shaft on which the fanis mounted. The fan housing also includes a scroll forming member formedof sheet material and preferably including a cutoff. The scroll memberis mounted between the end members with the cutoff positioned at eitherside of the center of the fan housing, whereby the fan may be operatedin either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction.

The duplicate end members may be formed at their periphery with flangesof substantial width with the flanges arranged in abutting relation toform the intermediate portion of the fan housing. Preferably, the endmembers are formed with narrow flanges and the scroll member is formedof substantial width, being fixed at its ends to the end member andforming the intermediate portion of the housing. The arrangementincludes means for attaching the closures to the end members with theinlet bell located in registration with the axis of the scroll and,accordingly, the axis of the fan regardless of which way the scroll isassembled with the end pieces.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a side elevational view of acentrifugal fan housing embodying my invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view;

FIG. 3 is an end elevational view looking to the left of FIG.

FIG. 4 is an end elevational view looking to the right of FIG.

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the components embodied in the fanhousing;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken on a line corresponding to line 6-6 ofFIG. 4 illustrating a double-ended fan mounted in the housing;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 7-7 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 4 with the housing components assembledfor clockwise rotation of the fan;

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 5 illustrating a modified form of endmembers; and

FIG. 10 is a view taken on line 10-10 of FIG. 7.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The housing includes a pair ofend members 10 complemental in form and dimension. The end membersinclude a flat wall 11 having a linear edge defined by an outwardly bentflange 12. The sides of the end member l0 extend downwardly from theends of the flange l2 and merge with a semicircular bottom edge 13. Theend members 10 are formed with identical and symmetrical openings 15,enlarged in a direction transversely of the end member. The peripheraledge portion of each end member extending from the ends of the flange 12LII is bent inwardly to form a flange 20. The marginal portion 21, ofuniform width, of the sidewall Ill about the opening 15 is offsetinwardly as at 23 (FIG. 6).

Closures 25,26 are provided for the openings 15 in the end walls. Theseclosures are in the form of flat plates symmetrically dimensioned andshaped to be received on the inwardly offset marginal surfaces 23. Theclosure 25 is formed with an inlet bell 27 and the closure 26 is formedwith a relatively small opening 28. The inlet bell 27 and the opening 28are located in an end area of the closures for a purpose herein laterreferred to. The plates 25,26 are formed with apertures 30, and the endwalls 11 of the end members 20 are formed with like apertures 31. Theapertures 30,31 are located symmetrically, whereby the end plates 25,26may be rotated I in either direction and affixed to the inwardly ofl'setmargins 21 of the end members as by fasteners 32 extending through theapertures 30,31. The closures 25,26 may be affixed to the end members byother means, as by being secured to the end members by adhesive,especially if these parts are formed of plastic material. Also, it willbe apparent that other means may be employed for symmetricallypositioning the closures 25,26 with their openings arranged inregistration with the axis of the scroll by symmetrically arranged meansother than the symmetrically arranged fasteners 32. Actually, theshoulder formed by the inwardly offset portion 21 of each end member isdimensioned and shaped comparable to the periphery of the plates 25,26and accordingly provides means for symmetrically positioning the endplates.

The fan housing further includes a scroll 35 formed of sheet material.In the arrangement shown in FIGS. 1-7, the scroll 35 is formed at oneend with a relatively narrow flange 37, and terminates at its oppositeend in a cutoff 40 which may be provided by bending the sheet material,forming a plate 41, extending from the cutoff 40 to like ends of theflanges 12 (see FIGS. 5 and 7). The upper ends of the peripheral flanges20 of the end members are bent outwardly to form relatively shortflanges 48,69 which are offset downwardly from the plane of the flanges12 a distance equal to the thickness of the sheet stock from which thescroll 35 is formed. The flange 37 and the cutoff plate 41 arepositioned on these flanges 48,49 and secured thereto by screw fastenersor the like.

Also, in the arrangement shown in FIGS. l-7, the side edges of thescroll member 35 are positioned on the inner surfaces of the peripheralflanges 20 of the end members. The latter are provided with holes 50 andthe scroll member with holes 51 spaced complemental to the holes 50 forthe reception of fasteners to secure the end members 20 to the sideedges of the scroll 35. In this arrangement, the scroll forms theintermediate member of the fan housing.

Referring to FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and 7, the scroll forming member 35 ispositioned with the cutoff plate 41 extending from the cutoff 40 to theflanges 49 to which the plate is secured. Accordingly, the scroll flange37 is positioned and fixed to the short flanges 48. In order that thecutoff 40 be properly located and supported, the walls 11 of the endmember 10 are formed with inwardly extending beads 60. Each end memberis formed with a bead 60 positioned each side of the plane indicated byline 62 of FIG. 7 extending perpendicular to the flanges l2, this planebeing located intermediate the ends of the flanges 12. There is also acircular bead 61 merging with the upper bead 60. It will be apparent,making reference to FIG. 7 particularly, that these beads 60,61 serve tolocate the cutoff so and afford a support therefor together with theplate 41. The outer ends of beads 60,61 terminate in spaced relation tothe adjacent portion of the flange 20, whereby the opposite end of thescroll member 35 can extend upwardly along the inner surface of theflanges 20 with the flange 37 overlapping the flanges 48.

With the scroll positioned as in FIGS. 3, 4, and 7, the closure 25 willbe affixed to the end member 10 with the inlet bell 27 arranged inregistration with the axis 63 of FIG. 7 of the scroll 35. In likemanner, the closure 26 will be afflxed to the opposite end member 20with the opening 28 therein also located in registration with the axisof the scroll to accept a motor shaft 65 on which the fan 67 is mounted.Referring to F IG. 4, the fan will operate in a counterclockwisedirection as indicated by the arrow 67. In FIG. 8, the enclosure 25 hasbeen reversed to locate the inlet bell in the right-hand portion of theend member, in which event the fan will rotate in a clockwise directionas indicated by arrow 70 in that figure. It will be understood that theclosure 26 will likewise be reversed to position the fan in the axis ofthe scroll.

In the arrangement shown in FIG. 9, the end members are formed withelongated flanges 120, rather than the short flanges as shown in FIGS.l7. The flanges 120 are secured together in abutting relation by anysuitable means and form the intermediate portion of the housing ratherthan the scroll 35. With this arrangement, the scroll 135 curvesdownwardly only a short distance from the cutoff 40 inasmuch as theremainder of the scroll compartment is formed by the end member flanges120. The scroll 135 is of sufficient width to extend to the walls 11 ofthe end members. The flanges 112 correspond to the flanges 12 in FIGS.1-7. In this arrangement shown in FIGS. 1-7, the end members may beeconomically produced by being drawn from sheet metal. In thearrangement shown in FIG. 9, the end members with the flanges 120 may bemolded from plastic material. In FIG. 9, the flanges 148,!49 arecomparable to the flanges 48,49 in FIGS. 1-7. The walls 11 of the endmembers may be formed with holes 80 to receive fasteners 8! to securemounting legs 83 to the end members. In FIG. 6, a double-ended fan ismounted in the housing and, accordingly, a closure is afiixed to eachend member to provide an inlet bell at each end of the fan.

The fan housing of my invention is particularly advantageous in that theneed for separate inventories of parts for rightand left-hand fanrotation is eliminated. The production cost is materially reduced inthat the and members are of identical symmetrical form; and in thearrangement shown in FIGS. l-7, the capacity of the fan is increased bysimply using a wider scroll forming member. The fan housings may beinstalled in back-to-back relation with a common motor mounted betweenthe housings for driving both fans, the arrangement still permitting achoice of right-hand or left-hand fan rotation.

lclaim:

l. A centrifugal fan housing for either leftor right-hand discharge fromthe fan housing comprising a pair of end members complemental in formand dimension, each of said end members including a wall having a linealedge surface and being formed with an elongated opening extending in adirection parallel to said lineal edge surface in areas of the wall atopposite sides of a plane extending perpendicular to said lineal surfacemedial of the ends thereof, a scroll member terminating at one end at acutoff, means for reversibly mounting said scroll member intermediatesaid end members with said cutoff having a downstream extending surfacesubstantially coplanar with said lineal edge surface, with the cutoffextending inwardly from a selected end of said lineal edge surface andterminating in spaced relation to the opposite end thereof to provide adischarge opening in one direction, a closure for the opening in thewall of each end member, one of said closures being formed with an inletopening in one end area thereof, the wall of said one end member andsaid one closure having symmetrically arranged means cooperable to fixsaid one end closure to said one end member with the axis of the inletopening in said one closure arranged in registration with the axis ofsaid scroll is in said one direction and said closure being adapted inthe opposite end area of said elongated opening to fix the axis of theinlet opening in registration with the axis of the scroll in theopposite direction.

2. A centrifugal fan housing having means for adapting the fan housingfor discharging in opposite directions, said fan housing comprising apair of end members complemental in form and dimension and including awall having a curved perimeter merging at its ends with a linealsurface, a scroll member mounted intermediate said end members, saidscroll member terminating at one end at a cutoff, means for reversiblymounting said cutofl substantially coplanar with said lineal surface ata selected side of a plane extending perpendicular to said linealsurface medial of the ends thereof, the wall of one of said end membersbeing formed with an elongated opening, extending in the area of saidwall at opposite sides of said plane, a closure for said openingdimensioned comparable thereto, said closure being formed with an inletopening, the wall of said one end member and said closure havingsymmetrically arranged means cooperable to fix said closure to said endmember with the inlet opening in said closure in registration with theaxis of said scroll in one direction of discharge and the wall of saidend member and the closure member having means to fix said inlet openingin registration with the axis of said scroll when the dischargetherefrom is in the opposite direction.

3. A centrifugal fan housing as set forth in claim 2 wherein themarginal area about said opening in said one end member is offsetinwardly, and the perimeter of said closure being of complemental shapeand dimension and overlapping said inwardly offset marginal portion ofsaid wall.

4. A centrifugal fan housing as set forth in claim 2 wherein saidopening is noncircular and the walls of said end members are formed ontheir inner surfaces with cutoff supporting beads at opposite sides ofsaid plane, said beads extending in close parallel adjacency with saidlineal surfaces, whereby said scroll and said cutoff may be mounted ateither side of said medial plane.

5. A centrifugal fan housing as set forth in claim 1 wherein the closurefor the opening in the wall of said other end member is formed with anopening to receive a fan supporting shaft, the wall of said other endmember and said other closure having symmetrically arranged meanscooperable to fix said other end closure to said other end member withsaid shaft receiving opening in registration with the axis of saidscroll.

l a: i it UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION PatentNo. 3,619,080 Dated November 9 1971 I CHARLES E. BULLOCK It is certifiedthat error appears in the above-identified patent and that said LettersPatent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column L, line 37, Claim 3, before "the" insert --said opening isnoncirc'ular and-- Column 4, line L2, Claim L, delete "said opening isnoncircular and" Signed and sealed this 30th day of May 1972.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCIIER,JR. ROBERT GOT'ISCHALK Attesting Officer Commissionerof Patents DRM Po-1050 (10-69) uscoMM-Dc scan-Pan i UVS. GOVERNMENTPRINTING OFFICE: llll 0-36l-33l

1. A centrifugal fan housing for either left- or right-hand dischargefrom the fan housing comprising a pair of end members complemental inform and dimension, each of said end members including a wall having alineal edge surface and being formed with an elongated opening extendingin a direction parallel to said lineal edge surface in areas of the wallat opposite sides of a plane extending perpendicular to said linealsurface medial of the ends thereof, a scroll member terminating at oneend at a cutoff, means for reversibly mounting said scroll memberintermediate said end members with said cutoff having a downstreamextending surface substantially coplanar with said lineal edge surface,with the cutoff extending inwardly from a selected end of said linealedge surface and terminating in spaced relation to the opposite endthereof to provide a discharge opening in one direction, a closure forthe opening in the wall of each end member, one of said closures beingformed with an inlet opening in one end area thereof, the wall of saidone end member and said one closure having symmetrically arranged meanscooperable to fix said one end closure to said one end member with theaxis of the inlet opening in said one closure arranged in registrationwith the axis of said scroll is in said one direction and said closurebeing adapted in the opposite end area of said elongated opening to fixthe axis of the inlet opening in registration with the axis of thescroll in the opposite direction.
 2. A centrifugal fan housing havingmeans for adapting the fan housing for discharging in oppositedirections, said fan housing comprising a pair of end memberscomplemental in form and dimension and including a wall having a curvedperimeter merging at its ends with a lineal surface, a scroll membermounted intermediate said end members, said scroll member terminating atone end at a cutoff, means for reversibly mounting said cutoffsubstantially coplanar with said lineal surface at a selected side of aplane extending perpendicular to said lineal surface medial of the endsthereof, the wall of one of said end members being formed with anelongated opening, extending in the area of said wall at opposite sidesof said plane, a closure for said opening dimensioned comparablethereto, said closure being formed with an inlet opening, the wall ofsaid one end member and said closure having symmetrically arranged meanscooperable to fix said closure to said end member with the inlet openingin said closure in registration with the axis of said scroll in onedirection of discharge and the wall of said end member and the closuremember having means to fix said inlet opening in registration with theaxis of said scroll when the discharge therefrom is in the oppositedirection.
 3. A centrifugal fan housing as set forth in claim 2 whereinthe marginal area about said opening in said one end member is offsetinwardly, and the perimeter of said closure being of complemental shapeand dimension and overlapping said inwardly offset marginal portion ofsaid wall.
 4. A centrifugal fan housing as set forth in claim 2 whereinsaid opening is noncircular and the walls of said end members are formedon their inner surfaces with cutoff supporting beads at opposite sidesof said plane, said beads extending in close parallel adjacency withsaid lineal surfaces, whereby said scroll and said cutoff may be mountedat either side of said medial plane.
 5. A centrifugal fan housing as setforth in claim 1 wherein the closure for the opening in the wall of saidother end member is formed with an opening to receive a fan supportingshaft, the wall of said other end member and said other closure havingsymmetrically arranged means cooperable to fix said other end closure tosaid other end member with said shaft receiving opening in registrationwith the axis of said scroll.